PREP NOTES : Buena Park Victory Worthy of a Dunking

After the Buena Park water polo team defeated Sunny Hills in a Freeway League game last Thursday, the Coyotes tossed Coach Ted Clark into the pool at Independence Park in Fullerton.

Pool-dunking is usually reserved for coaches who have just won a championship, but Clark’s players felt the 7-6 victory over Sunny Hills deserved such a ceremony.

After all, Buena Park had just ended Sunny Hills’ league winning streak at 120 games, the longest such streak in Southern Section water polo history. The Lancers hadn’t lost in league play since 1969.

“There’s been many Buena Park teams that have come through here trying to defeat Sunny Hills all these years,” said Clark, who played water polo at Buena Park before graduating in 1971. “And Sunny Hills always pulled it off.”

Clark thought Sunny Hills had pulled it off again last week. Sunny Hills’ Omar Amr pushed the ball into the net as time ran out, but it was too late to force overtime.

“Sunny Hills might have prevailed,” said Clark, who has coached at Buena Park since 1976 and became head coach in 1983. “It seems like they have quite often. I’m sure it would have demoralized our kids if that last shot had been in time, being that close.”

Clark had to stay and coach the junior varsity team because his assistant had to go to work that night. He said he was able to borrow some dry clothes to wear.

Did he mind the dunking?

“No, not that time,” he said. “It was pretty nice.”